Monday, August 17, 2020 MADRID. The Europe Peace Foundation (EPF) is closely following developments in Belarus.

Hundreds of thousands of Belarusians took to the streets all across Belarus to participate in the Freedom March. These peaceful demonstrations had clear demands: the release of all unlawfully detained people, the prosecution of those responsible for police brutality, and holding of new presidential elections.

On 9 August, Presidential elections took place in the Republic of Belarus. The EPF has been following the developments leading to the presidential elections closely. During the electoral campaign, the people of Belarus have demonstrated the desire for democratic change.

Hundreds of protesters have been wounded and two have died in clashes with police over the past week. Some 6,700 people have been arrested, and many have spoken of torture at the hands of security forces. We call on the Belarusian authorities to release immediately and unconditionally all detained.Authorities must show restraint in responding to demonstrations. Allegations of torture and other mistreatment of people under detention must be thoroughly investigated.

The Europe Peace Foundation calls on Belarusians to address post-election grievances through dialogue to preserve peace in the country.

**𝐄𝐍𝐃***
𝐅𝐨𝐫 𝐟𝐮𝐫𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐢𝐧𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧, 𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐜𝐭: 𝐓𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐩𝐡𝐨𝐧𝐞: (+𝟑𝟒) 𝟗𝟏𝟎 𝟐𝟑𝟏 𝟐𝟏𝟒 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐬@𝐞𝐮𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐟𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧.𝐨𝐫𝐠